Hot weather to blame for Scarborough town centre footfall

Carl Gavaghan, Local Democracy Reporting Service

The scorching weather has been blamed for a decrease in the number of shoppers visiting Scarborough town centre this summer.

It is believed that many people turned their back on the high street to head to the beach instead as the coast basked in record temperatures in 2018.

In a statement to go before Monday’s (5th) full meeting of Scarborough Borough Council, the cabinet member for Transformation, Cllr Heather Phillips (Con) says that the figures showed that roads leading down to the beach saw an upturn despite the sun

She wrote: “Overall, footfall in Scarborough town is down 5.3% on the same period for the previous year. The national average is -1.5%. This is we believe a consequence of the good weather we have enjoyed this season as the figures for the footfall in the Newborough area show an increase of 1.3% over the summer months of June to September.

“This indicates that although there are [fewer] shoppers/visitors in the central pedestrianised area, there is an increase in numbers heading in the direction of the seafront.

“The town centre vacancy rate for Q2 2018 (Jul-Sep) has remained static at 13.56%.

“The last weekend of September saw the opening of Amelia’s Chocolates in the old Scarborough Evening News office which is a welcome addition to the centre. Refurbishment works to the Salisbury Arcade area are now complete and it is hoped these improved retail units will soon attract new businesses into the town.”